Chicken and Kale Pasta Bake

If you add a whole bunch of Kale to a baked pasta dish with cheese, does that make it healthy and resolution appropriate? How about if you use lower fat cheese? And whole wheat pasta?  Ok.  Here is a "healthy" baked pasta dish that is both delicious and not too bad for you.  Would it be on a cleanse diet menu? Nope.  Does it have carbs? Obviously.  But, it allows you to be good to yourself  by eating some healthy greens and whole grains and also good to yourself by eating pasta and cheese.  This recipe is from the faultless (in my humble opinion) Martha Stewart.  It is a great dish to make on a Sunday because it makes a lot of pasta and can serve as leftovers for the next week.  The recipe is after the jump.

Chicken and Kale Pasta Bake (Adapted from Martha Stewart and available at marthastewart.com)

 I adapted Martha's recipe slightly by using half of the ricotta she called for.  Next time, I would stick with half the amount, but you know what, I would go with fresh, full fat ricotta.  If you can get your hands on fresh ricotta, that is the stuff of the gods, it is divine.  Of course this dish wouldn't be as "healthy" but it still will have lots of Kale (and Kale is so healthy that it counteracts the negative effects of any unhealthy ingredient it is paired with).  I also added a little breadcrumb crust
Ingredients: 
Coarse salt and ground pepper (this is a lot of pasta, don't be dainty with the seasoning) 
3/4 pound whole wheat pasta shells 
2 tablespoons unsalted butter 
1 large yellow onion, diced medium 
3 garlic cloves, minced 
2 bunches kale (1 1/2 pounds), tough stems and ribs removed, leaves coarsely chopped 
2 cups shredded or chopped cooked chicken (directions below)
1 container (48 ounces) part-skim ricotta 
3 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest (from 2 lemons) 
3/4 cup Parmesan, grated (2 1/4 ounces)
[Optional: 4 tablespoons panko bread crumbs, 1 tablespoon melted butter]

Directions:

1. If you want to use a market rotisserie chicken, feel free. I took two split bone in skin on breasts and one bone in skin on thigh and rubbed a tablespoon of olive oil on them. I then salted them, peppered them, and onion powdered them.  I roasted them in a 375 degree oven on a sheet pan until cooked through, about 1 hour.  I let them cool to room temp, removed the skin and removed the chicken from the bone and then chopped the chicken.  This made about 3 cups of cooked chicken. Reserve the extra cup for other uses.
2. Once the chicken is ready, preheat oven to 350.
3. In a large pot of salted water, cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and return to pot.
4. In a large skillet heat the butter, add the garlic and onions and cook until wilted, about 4 minutes.  Add the kale and stir until it wilts.  Cover and cook until almost tender, 5 minutes.
5. Add the kale mixture to the pasta, stir in the chicken, lemon zest and the ricotta cheese and mix until the ingredients are incorporated.  
6. Add salt and pepper and mix.
7. Pour the pasta mixture into a large casserole dish or a 9 by 13 baking dish.
8. If you want the breadcrumb crust, mix the melted butter, breadcrumbs and Parmesan and sprinkle over the top.  Alternatively, you can just sprinkle the Parmesan on top.
9. Bake for 30 minutes until top is golden.